Our Favorite Curmudgeon
by anotherweasley
Summary: Adam Schiff's ponders over his years spent in the DA's office on his last day.


Our Favorite Curmudgeon  
By:Olivia  
  
"We've changed a lot and then some-some/You know that we have always been down-  
down/And if I ever didn't thank you-you/Then just let me do it now."-311-"Down"  
  
Adam Schiff couldn't believe that this was his last day as District Attorney he thought as he  
gazed out his office window at the New York skyline.  
  
His leaving was bittersweet. He had spent a little over a decade in this office. A decade was a  
long time, even more so to one who was no longer a young man and had not been so for many  
years. And as much as he was looking forward to the change in jobs and the new challenges that  
awaited him, he was very sorry to leave the people he currently worked with behind. He would  
never admit it to them, but they were like family to him.  
  
He cast his mind back to his first few years as DA and saw in his mind a young Executive  
Assistant DA who was cool and calculating and had a wonderful way of convincing juries to see  
the crimes from his point of view. Ben Stone with his right hand ADA Paul Robinette had been  
a force to be rekonded with. They were both driven to the higher good and to get criminals off  
the streets. Ah, how he missed those days.  
  
But eventually Paul had taken another job and Claire Kincaid had become Ben's new ADA.   
There was tension at first. Claire had been young and relatively inexperienced. She had just  
come from clerking with Judge Thayer. But Adam was not in the mood to go down that road of  
thought.  
  
Anyway, there had been tension. Adam could tell Ben missed his friend, Paul, and therefore was  
not in the mood to train his new ADA or give her much of a chance. But eventually Ben came  
around and they started working well together. Ben saw Claire's potential and encouraged her.   
They helped each other out during difficult cases and situations.  
  
And then came the case that disillusioned Ben forever from the world of law. He blamed himself  
for his witness' death. He reasoned that if he hadn't have made her testify, she would still be  
alive. Adam felt that rash decisions made in the heat of the moment were not always best. But  
Ben had made his decision, thus ending an era.  
  
Then his new EADA came aboard-Jack McCoy. All Irish spit and fire that one. His relentless  
and zealous pursuit of punishing criminals made Jack push the lawful boundaries of his  
profession, sometimes to the breaking point. But it was also what made him a successful  
attorney.   
  
And Jack requested to keep Claire on as his ADA. Whether or not that was out of the kindness  
of his heart, Adam didn't know, but somehow doubted it. Adam had hoped his reputation with  
his female assistants would have been left behind him, but it was not to be as he proved with  
Claire. They worked well together and their work never suffered, so Adam turned a blind eye to  
it all. As Jack's ADA, Claire really came into her own. She gained in experience and  
confidence.  
  
And then Claire had been killed while driving Detective Briscoe home from that bar. Adam had  
truly been sorry. Of all his Counselors, she was the only one that had ever died on his watch. It  
was indeed a tragedy. A young woman cut down in the prime of her life, by an accident which  
could have been prevented simply by the drunk never getting behind a wheel that night.  
  
It was sad that it should have all ended that way. The month before she died, Adam had noticed  
that she, just like Ben, was walking down that same path of disillusionment about the job. Had  
she lived, she might have left the office. Sometimes his attorneys could not wrap their minds  
around the concept that they were human, which meant they were fallible. There was no way to  
predict the consequence of every action. You do the best that you can. If you make a mistake,  
you learn from it and try to correct it so it doesn't happen again.  
  
But Claire had died and Jack had been devastated. Adam wasn't certain he would be able to  
continue, but Jack threw himself back into the one constant, the one thing he knew-work. And  
there he had been ever since. No more romantic affairs with his female assistants. It would  
remind him too much of Claire and hurt too much Adam figured.  
  
Claire's replacement as Jack's ADA was Jamie Ross. Jack had protested against having another  
ADA. He didn't want Jamie in Claire's position and taking over her office. Jack's feelings were  
understandable even though the idea of not having and ADA was ludicrous. Even Jack McCoy  
the invincible couldn't handle the work load by himself. He needed help. And so Adam had  
suggested Jamie. Jamie was a competent attorney, with a background as a defense lawyer.   
What's more, Adam liked her and knew Jack would if he gave her a chance. And so Adam  
overrode Jack giving Jamie the position.  
  
And eventually Jack came to respect and work well with Jamie. They worked together for two  
years, but eventually she was forced to choose between her job and her child. She couldn't deal  
with the hours the job demanded and be a mother. Her ex-husband threatened to take custody of  
her child if she didn't spend more time with her. Jamie choose the only option she felt available  
and so she choose her child over the job. Adam understood, but he wished they lived in a perfect  
world where choices like those didn't have to be made.  
  
Last, but certainly not least, Jack's current ADA was Abbie Carmichael. She had earned her  
stripes in the DA's Narcotics Division and was looking for a change with Homicide. The Texan  
had as much spit and fire as Jack did, and at times even more so. It was a rare person who could  
make even the steely Jack McCoy look soft.   
  
Their first meeting could have gone smoother to put it mildly. They weren't thinking too highly  
of each other at the time as they fought over the handling of their first case together. But now  
they respected each other and worked well together. They still had heated debates over cases,  
but they had the same goal-to put criminals away. They were passionate and effective at pursuit  
of that agenda.  
  
And so Adam would leave the two of them to continue their work. He was not worried about  
leaving them. They would do just fine. And even though he would miss the two of them, he was  
more than happy to leave the headaches caused by the criminals, media, politicians, and  
sometimes even his DA's as well, behind him.  
  
Adam glanced at his watch. It read five o'clock. Quitting time, he thought. Although on a  
typical day he would stay in the office until after dark, he supposed they would excuse him this  
once for only working eight hours.  
  
Adam gathered up his coat and hat and put them on. He grabbed his briefcase and headed for the  
door. He took one last look around. Everything that was his had already been packed and taken  
home. It was all ready for the new DA Nora Lewin. After the Mayor had hosted his retirement  
party, he had gotten everything in order for the transition so it would be a smooth one. Adam  
turned out the light and closed the door for the last time.  
  
He could see the light shining under Jack's door. He and Abbie were hard at work on one of  
their current cases. Just because he was leaving, the wheel of justice still had to keep grinding.   
He had promised Jack he would stop by before he left.  
  
Adam knocked on the door and heard Jack yell for him to come in. Adam opened the door and  
nearly had a heart attack.   
  
"Surprise!" shouted a chorus of voices.  
  
It took a second for it to all sink in for Adam. The "We'll Miss You, Adam" sign was hung  
across Jack's window in bold letters. And all the faces were smiling at him.  
  
Adam was never so amazed. They were all there. All of his old and current Counselors. Ben,  
Paul, Jamie, and of course Jack and Abbie. He was momentarily pained by the fact that Claire  
couldn't be there, but it passed quickly in the joy of seeing all his old friends. This was one of  
the few moment in his life when Adam could say he was truly touched. He was touched by their  
gesture and their thoughtfulness.  
  
Jack spoke up. "We all just wanted to give you a proper send off, Adam. You've done so much  
for all of us, and put up with all of us, over the years, and we just wanted you to know that you'll  
be missed and that it won't be the same around here without you."  
  
Adam cleared his throat for a second giving him time to control the tears that were threatened to  
spill over. No since in crying in front of these people.  
  
"I just wanted to say that I've been thinking a lot today over my years here. And it's been my  
personal privileged and honor to work with all of you at some point. And as different as you all  
are in your unique ways, you were in this job to put criminals away and keep the streets of New  
York safe under our laws. You're differences brought many good things to this office because  
there was a common trait you all share-the integrity of your characters. And as for my current  
two," said Adam smiling wryly at Jack and Abbie, "who have given me a few headaches in their  
pursuit of justice, headaches that you all have given me over the years,..."  
  
There were chuckles and smiles around the room.  
  
"...I know I leave the office in good hands. Thank you."  
  
Everyone smiled and clapped. Adam became a little embarrassed by all the attention so he  
turned to Jack and said, "Well..let's get the liquor flowing. There are stories to be told."  
  
And that's exactly what happened.  



End file.
